Nature of the Game
Chapter 2

"Give me what I want," the pink haired Kunoichi called out from across the clearing as her former teacher panted with fatigue from training. Sakura had crept up and watched him perfecting his Jutsu and performing amazing techniques, for quite some time.

It had been almost an hour that she'd sat among the foliage nearby, watching his tall wiry physique performing techniques that only someone of his calibre could. He was never boring to watch, never a disappointment. It would be honest to say she didn't think anyone could possibly have anything on Kakashi. Even Sasuke's bloodline techniques and sharingan mastery couldn't surpass the gentle grace of the elite she was currently watching. He was almost perfection and at times, it could make her catch her breath.

Finally after a drawn out training session and a last brilliant performance, Kakashi dropped heavily to a sitting position on the soft grass. By his posture alone, she could tell he was worn out. He was there before she had arrived, so who knew how long he'd been training? But she couldn't miss this opportunity, most certainly couldn't.

"Don't ignore me Kakashi, it will cost you." The wry smile began to bloom on her face.

"I'm not interested in your game today, Sakura." He didn't lift his head. Instead he sat down with legs outstretched, slipping off his headband. One gloved hand rose to rub at his sharingan and then sift through his silver locks making them neater, rather than messier.

"Hm, uncommonly cold, Kakashi." She sauntered over. "Pissed off about something?"

Making her way to stand beside him, she straddled his outstretched legs and sat down on his shins, balancing herself on his knees. In her mind she meant to tease him, but he didn't seem to be in a joking mood. It wouldn't take her three guesses to figure out why. She tried hard to avoid letting the discomfort of the moment ruin some time with him.

"No, just not interested. It's not a good time." He lay back on the grass. She could see he'd been training for a while, and looked worn out. He was being stand-offish. Something she wasn't impressed about. But it wasn't like Sakura to give up so easily either.

"This seems like a perfect time, you're tired and I'm not." He could hear the snap of the pouch at the side of her leg after she removed her hands.

"Don't bother, I'm not going to participate." His eyes closed.

Sakura creased her eyebrows; he was being cold. She didn't like this, and the only explanation she could glean from his indifference was that she had gone out with Genma. It raised some questions about the dynamics of their relationship, but at this moment she found herself unable to sort them out.

Her eyes slid up to his mask as he lay back and ignored the eager kunoichi leaning over him. Genma had definately painted a picture of how to take it, and just the idea of it made her a little nervous, made her feel their contact. In the whole scope of their relationship they'd gotten extremely comfortable even with casual contact, but to seduce the mask away from him was a little extreme. Maybe just the direct approach for the time being, she chided inwardly. Lifting herself off his legs to straddle his body on her hands and knees, she crawled slowly above him until they were almost eye level. He didn't even open his eyes.

Ha,ha, too trusting Kakashi!

Inwardly, she laughed and encouraged herself to continue, then elevated her hand to linger near his face. His eyes were shut and even though he knew she was close above him, she thought it couldn't hurt to try.

Carefully reaching her hand further, she lightly touched him as her finger tagged the rim of the cloth. It was almost unseen as his hand shot up and grabbed her wrist, pulling her towards him, but his eyes remained closed. Her body fell heavily on top of his, their chests pressed together. "I said I wasn't interested." His face was only inches away from hers, his voice low and calm. She could feel the rumble of his deep voice against her body.

"How can I make you interested?" she teased. She ran her hand over his vest and swiftly snapped open a pocket, pulling out a scroll to dart off with it.

Kakashi sighed heavily. It was like she didn't understand the concept of no. Her playfulness was usually something he enjoyed, but today, something else was pushing that enjoyment aside. Of course, being Kakashi, he wasn't one to dwell on the why, just the what.

He got up slowly and stood in the clearing, letting his sharp senses take over in the search for his pink companion. He could feel her nearby. In her devious grip, she held the Fanged Vengeance scroll. A moment of relief passed through him and he was thankful that he'd never taught her to use it.

"I said I'm not playing, Sakura." He crouched again, watching for her. Draping his arms over his knees, he looked like the picture of calm composure even though inside he was perturbed with something he couldn't explain.

She hopped down from a tree nearby after understanding the finality of his words. The soft lines of her lips turned down, giving her a readably stung look. Defeat and a timid anger finally rose to replace her wounded appearance. He never turned her down; he was never this cold.

"Is this about Genma?" she finally asked.

"Why would that matter to me?" he asked coolly.

She looked at him and saw that it did seem to bother him, but if she were waiting for him to admit it, she'd go grey with time. A rhetorical question, yet she wondered if she could answer that, if he could even answer that? It was unusual to get this type of reaction from him and something dawned on her.

So he was playing that game too. She cocked an eyebrow and smiled at his coldness. He creased his silver eyebrows at her sudden happiness.

"You know, it was fantastic. Genma is so hot and what stamina! I'm pretty tired today, he ravaged me all night." She smiled coyly and watched for the reaction.

Kakashi didn't find it so amusing. The form of her former teacher in front of her disappeared and then reappeared beside her. He snatched the scroll from her hand while shaking his head; a stern look was all over his minutely exposed face. Without another word he disappeared.

Sakura spent the rest of the day training and decided to forgo any other meetings with the less than amused copy-nin. She thought it might be better to stay away from him. It was more than obvious that she pushed his buttons a little too hard. He was upset that she left with Genma, but she smiled knowing that he was capable of the same jealousy she was. Truly, pushing his buttons intrigued her a bit, and she wasn't sorry that things had changed just a little between them.

Sauntering along the stretched out street complete with it's shops and restaurants, Sakura and Ino finally made their way to the bustling pub. The evening had closed in, and she was excited to just get out and have a good time. When they entered, they managed to push through and find a good spot at the bar

Her gaze travelled the crowed room filled with ninja and civilian alike. Many danced, drank and mingled. The single scene was great for their line of work. People felt a little bit more urgency when it came to relationships, like it was possible that their time was short and they had to make the best of what was left.

She continued to rove the patrons until a sight stopped her, made her widen her eyes a little. Avoiding him all day had been easy, but low and behold he was at the usual table with the usual group. Giving a timid wave in his direction, he just nodded coolly and turned back to his companions. He really was pissed, she sighed to herself. Kakashi wasn't one to show his anger, and she realized she must have created a situation that had honestly angered him.

"What's his problem?" Ino asked, noticing his curtness.

"Me apparently," Sakura mumbled.

There isn't much I can do about it now, she thought. Tomorrow was another day, and perhaps Kakashi would be out of his grouch by then. Well, she could only hope, anyway.

Pulling a little on the short blue summer dress she wore, Sakura took off her little white sweater to reveal the spaghetti straps underneath. It was March and not very warm, but she loved to show her perfect shoulders. Being in the pub though, heat clung to her skin with the crowd of bodies filling the room. They jostled and bumped into each other and the warmth enveloped her. Ino was watching the fray and put on her best 'come hither' pout. Sakura understood that they would probably be waving off a few would-be boyfriends tonight.

As the two women stood there, a couple of Jounins approached, nice looking men with the stock grins the attractive kunoichi would usually get. They struck up a conversation with the women and Sakura found she was letting herself enjoy the attention for once, especially after the enlightening kiss from Genma the night before. She enjoyed the feeling and began to crave it a little, like someone had lit a match in her body that she couldn't extinguish.

Her back was to the crowd now as they chatted with the attractive eager jounin, but suddenly there were warm hands on her hips. It was a surprise, especially while standing with two men and Ino. But when she spun quickly to see who it was, she smiled.

"Genma!"

"Hello." He smiled cockily at her as he managed to press his body against the back of hers while he passed. He brushed by, still watching her and that knowing grin spread wider on his face. It was the kind of look that said that they had a secret, and he knew she was thinking about it. It made her blush.

She was smiling while remembering their little kiss. Well, little was not exactly the word for it. Hot, teasing, maybe even erotic, but not little. As she watched him walk over to the table Kakashi was at, she noticed Kakashi was looking up at her finally. Another strange expression, but at least he wasn't completely ignoring her. Again she tried to get some warmth from him with a smile, but he just turned away.

"Grump", she mumbled.

The night wore on and she couldn't stop herself from glancing back at the uninterested copy nin from time to time. His coldness was beginning to grate on her and she felt lonely without his companionship. It felt like something had changed from just yesterday. Maybe it was the two or five sakes, maybe it was the young nin sidling up to her and making obvious advances, but it just felt wrong.

She really just wanted to go over and sit with him. After all this time, she didn't feel she could do that. After all the games, their fun, and companionship, she felt like she'd been cast out of his circle. Her gaze slipped back to him, and she couldn't turn away.

"Who the hell is that?" she blurted out to Ino suddenly, and the two men standing with them.

Ino's head snapped around to see what Sakura was so interested in. There was a blonde pub waitress in a short skirt and a white collared shirt leaning dangerously close to Kakashi. Her scarlet painted fingernail teased the dark fabric hiding his face, in a seductively playful manner. She was talking through a wide smile, all toothy and alluring. Sakura noticed that the buttons on her shirt were not buttoned as far as necessary to hide her ample bosom.

"Geez, what's the matter Sakura? It's just some waitress hitting on Kakashi. You seem almost jealous?" Ino shot her a look that told her she would mess things up with the two Jounin if she continued.

"Look at her touching his mask. Do you know how long I've tried to get that mask down and just look at her! He's letting her just… just… play with it!" She was clenching her jaw in dismay and her outstretched hand motioned to them dramatically. Without even realizing it, she began to take a step towards the table Kakashi was at. Ino was the one to see what was happening and grabbed her arm tightly, bringing her back to reality.

"You can't just march over there, Sakura. What are you doing?" The blonde's voice was high, almost a warning.

Sakura turned back to look at her three dumbfounded companions. The Jounins looked back at the fuming kunoichi, shocked expressions on their faces. It was nothing though, who cared if they were shocked or not? She couldn't see anything but the pair at the back of the room now.

Kakashi and the waitress playful interaction made her livid. She couldn't remember feeling so angry before, but this was different. He was belligerent; he was doing it intentionally to make her mad, she was sure of it. She could admit that she was jealous but it was his fault, she reasoned. He didn't have to act like this. Damn him. He's never behaved like this before in front of me.

She continued to stare at them realizing that he had not looked over at her once. The awful notion dawned on her. Maybe he truly was interested in this woman? After a while her expression drained to complete disbelief as she watched him stand up to leave with the waitress. They brushed past without even looking at her. Her chest hitched, and her mind blanked for a moment. She actually had to look down to make sure she was still breathing.

"What the hell?" she finally said in a high voice as the whole situation broke her composure to pieces. Ino stood stunned with an expression of a deer in headlights.

Sakura's mind was working. It wasn't going to happen like this. As her decision was made, she looked over at the fully dressed Jounin in front of her. "Can I borrow a kunai?"

Wordlessly he pulled one from his holster and handed it to her, another deer in headlights.

Gripping the cold steel in her hand, she slipped out leaving Ino smiling uncomfortably at the two men. The speed at which she left told them she was on some sort of personal mission and no one was going to try to stop her.

As she slid over rooftops in the centre of the village now, she knew undoubtedly that Kakashi would be heading to his apartment. It would be the perfect place to cut him off. Seeing that she had arrived before he did, she perched at the overhang of his roof and waited. Having an ordinary person with him, he would have to walk normal, slow. She had time to formulate a plan. But in the wake of how much this situation had affected her, she couldn't really think of what to say.

After some time, and some doubt, she began to wonder if what she was doing was right. There was no claim to be called with the copy nin. Actually it was maybe pushing it to be sitting here and stopping him from enjoying a love life. Guilt, and something else began to sway her judgement. The urge to leave was sinking in, and she wondered if perhaps this would just open the rift between them more. What she had done earlier in the day with the teasing had seemed like playing, but this was downright interference in his life.

Stay or leave, stay or leave. She couldn't decide. Between him being with this woman, or her making Kakashi hate her, she couldn't fathom which was the lesser evil. But as she looked up, the time to choose had vanished. They stood below on the street looking up at the pastel-haired kunoichi dangling her leg leisurely over his entranceway.

The blonde had her arm linked in Kakashi's and that small intimacy seemed to make up her mind.

"You're slow," she whispered while playing with the kunai in her fingers and avoiding his gaze. Thankfully, she had even impressed herself with her nonchalant words.

"Bad timing Sakura, go home." He slipped his arm out of the blonde's but his voice was a warning. The tone made her cringe, but she decided to stand her ground. It wasn't for no reason that she had come."Not until you fight me." She stood up then to accentuate her words. It was a defiant act, and she hoped it had a desired effect on him. She just wanted the woman to go away.

Kakashi tried to hide his prying gaze, and the dark night helped, but he could still see quite high on her long legs as her dress blew up teasingly around her. Her green eyes blazed with emotion and he understood that she was not going to go quietly.

"Kakashi, let's make it another night, huh? Give me a call sometime," the waitress grumbled as she turned away. Kakashi nodded to her and they waved to each other as the blonde trotted away faster than would be normal. Kakashi watched her walk down the street and out of sight before turning back to the Kunoichi.

Even his small act of watching the woman furthered Sakura's anger with the situation.

"Alright, Sakura, you got what you wanted. She's gone. I'm sure you have an idea of what you've just cost me so you'd better go all out." His voice became calm, not the warning he had given her moments before.

At least there was some relief that he had dismissed his companion so easily. But still, he brought her here in the first place with the intention of…well, she didn't like to think about that. No, she decided she was not going to just forget it like he probably wanted her to. That was not the way Sakura worked, and she figured he must know that by now.

She jumped down and landed a few feet from him, her skirt bottom lifted with the movement, teasing him again as she held a hand down to keep it from exposing her. She looked at the small park across from his apartment and with a stern face, turned back to him. Her eyes stayed on him as she backed her way across the street and entered the grassy bare expanse, dimly lit by the streetlamps.

Kakashi shook his head a little, and even though he did it from time to time, Sakura couldn't read what he meant by it. Slowly, the copy nin came to the park as well, and stood across from her, maybe 15 steps away. They faced each other and Sakura crouched ready, willing, and able. If she could use her anger, she figured she would be as powerful as Naruto tonight.

But as she waited for Kakashi to take his fighting stance, her eyes widened. Slowly and deliberately, he lifted his headband to reveal his Sharingan in a motion so calm that she understood he was trying to get some reaction out of it. Judging by his intense gaze, she wasn't sure what reaction he wanted, but he got a shock for his effort.

"Wait," she said, lifting a hand in a stop gesture, fingers spread wide. He had never used it on her before.

"I told you I'm going to go all out. If you're too scared, then go home." He was matter of fact. Cold. The blankness of his statement told her he'd slipped into seriousness, and it send a shiver along her spine. It was almost as if she could feel his power in the air, and perhaps she could.

"Let's begin then." Her face was serious but her throat felt a little dry, tight.

She ran at him but disappeared before she reached him, he stood still looking forward. She appeared behind him and put the kunai by his neck. He immediately disappeared as well and then she felt a hand on her wrist, he was beside her. He pulled her hand behind her back and reached around her with his other hand to try to grab her neck. The force of his grip made her drop the kunai as he pulled her arm hard. She winced from the pain. But among the movements, she managed to slip a foot around his behind her and pull strongly, sweeping it out from under him. They both fell back and she landed on him with a thud, her head banging on his shoulder. His grip loosened from the impact and she got up. She performed a quick jutsu but he was on his feet performing the same one. It was a fire spell and both had to step back as their fireballs hit each other, illuminating the night.

She put her hand up to shield her eyes and then realized his hand was on the back of her neck. Reactively, she swung around and caught him in the side with a kick, her skirt flapping around her. He grabbed his side, off balanced and she took the opportunity to kick him again in the chest. As he fell back, she jumped on him, and straddled his body. She pressed his hands to the ground and sat down on his chest. Now she set her feet on his hands out to the side of his head. Heavy breathing came from under the mask, as he lay immobile under her.

"Liar," she whispered as she leaned forward. "You didn't seem like you even tried."

He looked up at her; her body sat prone to his gaze above him. Her long bare legs stretched out and down to where her feet held his hands, her skin so supple in the streetlight glow. He knew her skirt lay on his chest, barely hiding her and he resisted the urge to peek. This would be a bad time to peak, he mused inwardly.

"Give me what I want," she whispered in a husky tone. Gracefully, slowly, she slipped a finger into the top of his mask and ran it along the warm skin underneath. This would be it; she would finally see him. The excitement grew in her because she had waited so long for this. Unavoidably, she began to feel the same stir in her body that she felt from Genma's kiss. Anticipation made her shiver as she began to pull the light soft fabric from his face. It slid gently, easily down his skin. His eyes just watched her, something was behind them, but right now she couldn't focus on them enough to care. There was only the warm skin being exposed to her hungry eyes. It was almost off his nose, almost there.

Without realizing it was happening, his leg crossed over her chest and flipped her onto her back. Being forced to the ground hard, she felt his body fall against hers. Strong hands pinned both of hers beside her head. As the shift in power continued, she felt his shin plied against her thigh, slightly holding her legs open. The quick pain of his knee pressing on her leg made her groan a little. A sandaled foot snaked over her other leg forcibly holding her in place. The rate at which her breath emanated had sped up, her chest rose against his. She was scared and excited all at the same time. But at this moment, she couldn't say she hated the sensation.

"Sakura, I'm done playing this game," he said with an edge of anger. His mouth so close to hers she thought if she moved she would feel fabric against her lips.

His edged words replaced the small thrill of the game and raised her anger from inside. "Are you tired of it? Then just show me your face."

He looked at her for a moment, their eyes meeting, trying to understand each other.

"That's not the game I mean." He seemed to calm.

"Fine, I'm tired of it too! I've tried so hard to get that mask and all it takes is for some chesty waitress to whip her breasts out to get you to drop it. I feel so foolish." The accusing state of her narrow green eyes slowly became as pleading as her voice now. "Do you want that woman, Kakashi?"

"Sakura, why did you do this now? You knew what I was doing." His face was so close to hers; close enough to see the dark pattern in his crimson sharingan so clearly. The sight of both his eyes watching her made it hard to concentrate.

"because you...because..."

"Well?" He pushed on her hands and leg harder and she hissed with the pressure.

"Because she isn't good enough for you." She gritted her teeth from the pain and looked into his eyes, the deep blood coloured Sharingan stared through her. He didn't say anything right away, almost as if he had to think for a moment. The hesitation told her all and nothing. When he spoke again, his voice was so calm.

"Well, who is? You seem to think it's your decision. Who is, Sakura?"

A pause ensued. It was one of those moments when anything could happen and it would be up to one of them to break.

"No one," she whispered, and turned her eyes from him.

He continued to hold her hands. She felt a flush cross her face as she realized that his body was warm on her bare legs; his weight was on her and his face was so close. In the heat of the moment, their proximity hadn't affected her like it did now. Suddenly his presence was felt acutely.

Finally, he removed his shin from her thigh and she straightened her leg. Without letting her go, he moved to straddle her. She wasn't getting away yet.

"I won't apologize, I'm not sorry," she whispered turning her face back to him. A little defiance found it's way into her glare.

"How many times have I beaten you?" He said quietly. "This can't go on."

"I won't quit, Kakashi." She watched his eyes and couldn't help herself. A small laugh slipped from her pink lips. She could see the perturbation leave his eyes and then they closed as he shook his head. His hands freed hers and he sat up but still straddled her.

"I want to see your face," she whispered as she propped herself up on her elbows.

Kakashi leaned forward, bringing his face close to hers again. A small moment of shock, or maybe anticipation, graced her face as he neared her. She bit her lip.

"Well, it's your game and you haven't beaten me yet," He whispered, and she could see the smile under the mask.

It was then that he chose to end the night's entertainment as he shifted and began to rise off her body. Immediately, she felt the cool night invade the skin where his warmth had been moments before.

"Go home, Sakura." He turned to walk away.

"Kakashi, nothing happened with Genma."

"I know."

He continued to walk back across the street and stopped at his apartment door. He turned back slowly. She was now standing on the other side of the street watching him, chewing nervously on her thumbnail. If anyone looked at her like that they would perhaps say demure, innocent, but he knew how crafty and intelligent she was. She was probably standing there planning her next move.

"I'll see you tomorrow," he said quietly as he walked in his apartment and shut the door behind him.

Taking a deep breath, she tried to sort out everything that had happened and everything that she might have wanted to. It wasn't over, not by a long shot. Before she moved to leave, she smirked and made a mental note, "Hmm, doesn't lock his door."

Bright sunlight shone heatedly, illuminating the morning as Sakura strode the streets heading for Jounin headquarters. She was dressed again in her short black pants and a long sleeve black shirt that complimented her curves and earned a few looks for the effort. The red emblems were vivid against the black of the fabric, but nothing was as vibrant as her roseate locks. Her precious Konoha headband hung loosely around her neck and her hair was tied back in a ponytail. As she finally entered the tall, unmarked building, she scanned the area for who she was looking for.

"Good Morning, Sakura. Sleep well?" Kakashi asked her as she approached. He sat a table near the back wall in the headquarters, his chair tipped back and arms crossed. The ubiquitous dirty reading material blazed orange at her from his gloved hand.

"I have a large bruise on my leg." She looked at him and smiled sweetly.

"Sorry. But that's what happens when you play rough," he smirked.

She sat down beside him and pulled her pant leg up to show him the angry looking purple blotch on her perfect skin halfway up her smooth left thigh. A small hiss came from his covered mouth as he reached over and touched it lightly with his rough fingertips.

"Sorry," he said, sincerely this time.

"It's alright." She was still smiling. "I'm not that delicate."

"Any missions today?" She changed the subject.

He shook his head.

"What are you up to?" she asked.

"I thought I'd just train a bit; maybe just take it easy. Had a big fight last night, you know. What about you?" She could imagine the smile that came with that statement.

"No plans."

"Want to come?"

"Ok." She smiled widely and pulled her pant leg down. It was nice to have things bordering on back to normal. If she didn't have this, it would hurt a lot more than a bruise.

They walked leisurely to a grassy clearing and Sakura had realized how nice the sun felt on the dark cloth of her uniform. For a change, she didn't feel like training and the perfection of the day reminded her to enjoy something besides her life as ninja. She sat down and took pleasure in the soft breeze playing through her locks. She tugged the band out to let her hair flow freely. It felt good, and her smile widened when her tall companion sat down next to her.

They lounged silently, which was just fine with them. It wasn't uncomfortable in the least. They could just enjoy being in each other's presence. It was something that had developed as they had spent many days together beside the stream, in a clearing, or watching the fireflies at the crest of the forest. It was a peace that they found in each other, a calming effect that the quiet moments would perpetuate.

Kakashi watched her with interest. Her face was turned to the trees and she lifted a hand to slip some hair around her perfect ear with a slender finger. It seemed almost effortless and so graceful. He had noticed it before, just how delicate her movements were. Her green eyes were hidden beneath her soft eyelids, her long eyelashes fanned out below casting a small shadow on her cheek. Soft pink lips curved in an exquisite smile. She was truly graceful, he felt inspired to move a loose strand she had missed but resisted it.

Lying back on the grass, he began to think back to the thing that had started the trouble. He had been foolish to let her leave with Genma; he knew it. He didn't want her to, but couldn't say anything. He had no prior claim to her. She was just a playful opponent, just a friend. If she wanted to go with him, it was up to her. When she looked at him expectantly, did she want him to stop her? Sakura was a strong woman and she had her own mind. It wasn't his business to interfere if she was interested in someone, was it?

She turned and moved beside him, draping her upper body over his chest while smiling. He could feel the weight of her hands as her chin rested on them. As he breathed, she moved up and down in time with it while her gaze rested on his half covered face.

"I'm sorry I scared off your...um...friend, last night. Are you upset with me?" She sounded sincere, not playful like she usually was in these quiet moments. It wasn't her right to mess with his love life, but she was jealous. This morning as she left to find him, she admitted to herself that she didn't want another woman touching her Kakashi.

"I'm not mad," he said casually and she immediately felt abundant relief. Some curiosity about the situation tickled her, and she couldn't stop herself now that they were talking about it.

"Would you have shown her your face?"

"None of your business." She could hear the smirk in his words.

She rolled beside him and laid her head in the crease of his arm of which his hand lay behind his head. They watched the clouds float around above them in the perfect blue sky. The sun was teasing their skin under their dark clothes and she felt warm and lazy. There was no comfort like this one.

"Kakashi, I'm worried about something." She broke the silence.

"Hmm?" His eyes were closed.

"I think I'm going to put my name in for ANBU but I'm not sure if I can past the tests. I really want to progress but I worry that I don't have it in me." She was feeling serious suddenly, hoping for advice. They hadn't talked about it before, but she knew he would support her.

"You'll do fine. ANBU would be lucky to have you. There are different divisions and with your intelligence you would probably do some spy work or tactical planning. It's not just grunt work." He smiled. He figured she would join ANBU at some point. "You may not like the tattoo though, it's not tiny."

"Can I see yours?" she asked him as she rolled off his arm and waited for him to sit up.

He did sit up and vainly tried to roll up his sleeve. "Hold on, it won't go all the way up." He slipped his vest off and pulled his arm out of the bottom of his shirt exposing half his chest and a muscular arm. As he turned his shoulder towards her, she could see the dark swirled tattoo, black on his pale skin.

Crawling slightly to get closer, she sat up and wrapped her fingers around his bicep. She couldn't help herself when she touched the dark painted skin lightly, tracing over it with her other hand. Inadvertently, her eyes moved to his chest.

"Um...does it hurt to get?" she asked, forcing her gaze back to the item in question.

"A little, just stings. Nothing you can't handle." She saw his eye crease and he rubbed his shoulder lightly as if feeling it for himself. Despite her silent inner protests, he pulled his shirt back over and slipped his arm back in.

Sitting back down on the grass again, he leaned forward, arms on knees. Sakura crawled behind him and sat with her back against his. As her head lay back on his shoulder, some strands of her pink hair fell over his shirtfront. It looked so vibrant against the black and he took a moment to just appreciate the beauty of it. Gently, he ran his finger along it so softly that she couldn't feel it.

"You know it's my birthday tomorrow, don't you?" she asked quietly.

"How could I forget? You're going to be twenty, right?" He let his head tip back a bit so that it touched hers as he looked up at the cloud-dappled sky. "What would you like for a present? And don't say my mask!" he chuckled.

"Um, actually…can I let you know tomorrow?" Her tone was timid.

"Do you know what you want and you won't tell me or is it that you actually don't know?" He became suspicious with the unusually tight-lipped kunoichi.

"Well, I'll just tell you tomorrow and we'll leave it at that."

His curiosity was peaked.

Sakura breathed in the warm air deeply, enjoying the feel of him against her back. She had thought of what she wanted from him for her birthday, but she wasn't sure if he would agree to it. She would just have to wait and see. There wasn't much doubt that he wouldn't agree to it, but still, there was always the possibility that she might offend him in some way. Some subjects had just never been broached between them. Well, there was a first time for everything.

"How about lunch?" she asked. She casually turned around to speak in his ear and let her slender arms dangle over his shoulders. Her chest rested against his back.

His fingers slid over the soft skin and gripped her wrists lightly. "Sure," he said calmly, but his mind was spinning on what she had in store for tomorrow.

Revised May 20, 2005